It was warm.

That was all Clara needed to know, or cared to know. It was warm and she was happy, happy to alive, happy to be awake. She reached out to her sides, her fingers caressing soft fabrics; she curled her hands around the blankets and pulled them against her. It was a bed, a lovely, sun soaked bed. Her eyes were closed, but she felt the sun light beating against her lids. Her skin tingled with excitement, and comfort. She was free from the snow, the forest, the cold, the…

Clara's eyes surged open with panic, she screamed.

"Claerin?!" A pretty female voice whispered anxiously beside her. Clara bounded upright, sheets and blankets flying wildly about in her fluster. A sky light allowed sun to shine in through the ceiling and the room smelt like hay and grass. There was a warm breeze that flowed through the room, and Clara realized she had absolutely no idea where she was. The foreignness hit her like a brick wall, and her head swung to the side. She found herself looking at an unfamiliar face, a girl sitting upright in the bed next to her own.

The girl was beautiful. She had a long, wavy mess of blonde hair, hanging loose around delicate shoulders. She had crystal blue eyes that shone with genuine worry. She was looking straight at Clara, without any confusion, as if they had known each other their entire life.

"Claerin?" Clara breathed, "What…that's not my na- who are you?"

The girl laughed, "Eowyn, silly! What's gotten into you?" The girl, or Eowyn rather, dragged herself out of bed, landing softly on the floor and turning to pat down the layers of quilts. She was giggling to herself, and Clara had no idea why.

"Where am I?" Clara asked, gazing about the room. It was a simple room, with two little beds and a dresser for each. There was a small wooden door on the far wall, and the light from the hole in the ceiling was the only source of light in the room. Clara narrowed her eyes. There were no outlets, no phones, not even a lamp… there was no electricity at all. A new fear crept into Clara's thoughts.

"Did you have a nightmare again, sister? Well, no worries, you are home now in the safety of Rohan. Hurry, you must get up, we have to go check on the King… I pray for his health, it is failing quickly." Eowyn was oblivious to Clara's confusion. She was calling her by a different name, acting as if Clara were a different person completely… who was this girl? Where was Rohan? And why did Clara feel like she had just traveled hundreds of years back in time?

"Do you have a… um- mirror, erm, sister?" Clara croaked.

Without looking back at her, Eowyn continued about her business. "In the top drawer of your dresser, I came by it last night." She replied, casually.

Clara nodded, cautiously pushing the quilts back and prying herself out of bed. Her bare feet hit the wooden floor, and she tip toed towards the tall dresser at the end of her bed. She reached for the golden handle of the top drawer, and pulled it open. The mirror she found was little more than a shard of broken glass. Still, Clara was in no place to be picky.

Slowly, she lifted the mirror to catch her reflection.

Clara gasped; the shard slipped from her hand, hit the floor and shattered.

There was the world, as far as the eye could see. Laid out in front of them, forests and rivers touched the sky. It was beautiful, foreign, and completely bone chilling. This world was not their own, even the breaking dawn had a spark like no other. Ashton had never seen anything like it. It terrified him, but he could not take his eyes away. He let the breeze run over his skin, as he stood on the edge of the mountain side.

They had awoken in make shift sleeping bags, burrowed on the side of a great mountain. They had slept on rocks, under a little alcove that barely kept out the stars. It was magic; they had been transported to another dimension entirely. Him, Silvia and Luke were together at least, but that did little to improve the situation. The last thing Ashton remembers was Silvia clinging to him as he dragged them both towards the light in a wall of snow. The cold was still settled in his bones. That was last night, but now, in the early hours of morning, they were not trapped in a snow storm. They were somewhere very strange.

And they weren't alone.

There were others. Not humans. They were strange creatures. First, there were four little men, with big, hairy feet and wide, gentle eyes; two warriors with long swords and leather armor, who looked human enough. There was also a short, stout creature with beady, black eyes and an impossibly muscular build. The most terrifying of them all was the tall one, the one with snow white hair and clever looking eyes. He talked with a gentle tongue, but he moved with a terrifying grace. He had pointy ears, almost like an elf.

Finally, there was the wizard and what a sight he was. His name was Gandalf, but that is all they knew.

Ashton shivered, even under layers of leather fabrics; the cold chill of morning touched his skin. He looked behind him. Silvia was sitting on a rock, staring out over the mountain side and down towards the forest. She had a lost look in her eyes, her cheeks stained with tears. She had lost all of her energy in the breakdown she'd experienced not ten minutes past. Now, she was silent. She met Ashton's gaze, her eyes full of desperation. Ashton frowned, and looked away.

Luke was the most disturbed of the three. He sat with his legs dangling over the edge, a few meters away. He would not speak to either Ashton or Silvia, he would only whisper and curse to himself, trying to figure out a plan. This was the first time Ashton had ever seen Luke truly terrified. It was not a comforting thing to watch.

Fingers curled around Ashton's shoulder, "What's going to happen to us…?" Silvia breathed.

Ashton looked to her as she settled beside him. It was strange. Silvia would have never looked twice at him under normal circumstances, never bother speaking to him; she only cared about popularity and looks… Luke had both, which was why she was always chasing after him and not Ashton. Ashton couldn't help but enjoy the attention she had been giving him over the last few hours. He sighed, "I don't know, Sil"

"Are we going to be OK?" She asked, pressing the subject.

Ashton wished he could say yes.

They had changed.

Ashton and Silvia had changed. Sure, Silvia was still Silvia and Ashton was still Ashton, but there was something very different about them. It was not their voice, or their eyes, or their personalities… it was their bodies, the way they moved and stood and gazed out upon the valley. Silvia was draped in leather fabrics, weapons and blades dangling from her waist. She was shorter, sharper and much colder looking. Her face had molded into a stiff, sharp boned structure. Her hair was no long a fiery auburn, but a darker red, and her eyes too, had darkened. She was still bitter, still annoying, still complaining and obviously still Silvia, but the change was no less shocking.

Ashton's change was unimaginable. He was taller, slimmer and all of his imperfections had vanished. His cheek bones were unnaturally high, and his hair had gotten longer and sleeker. His lips were pinker, his skin was paler and his movements were long and graceful. His look was very similar to the snow haired man they had met when they woke earlier.

Luke wondered if he himself had changed too.

He stared down at his gloved hands. His new armor was almost completely crafted of leather, with the exception of a few metal clasps and iron pads. It was strangely weightless, falling carelessly across his newly toned body. Luke had already been well built but this new strength he gained was quite unnerving.

"What the fuck is happening…" Luke growled to himself, with no explanations in sight. His mind was twisting and swerving with chaotic ideas, still trying to process what had happened in the first place. Those worries occupied the majority of his mind, but one thought was slowly gaining dominance

Where was Clara?

And where was Katherine?

Katherine. He found himself thinking primarily of Katherine.

The eyes were deep. They rippled like water and sparked like flames. They told a story that none could read. She watched them move, flicker and look about with idleness. There was no emotion in those eyes, a cold, carelessness that chilled her to the bone. They were green like the forest, and black like the sea. She closed them, and let her new body mold to her mind.

They were her eyes. They were Katherine's eyes.

This was Katherine's body.

She reached out and touched the mirror. She let her long, elegant fingers trail down the cold glass. Her eyes followed, gazing about her new form. She was longer, leaner, stronger, faster… deadlier. She was beautiful, a dangerous beauty that made her mouth fall open in awe. Her cheekbones were high, her facial structure was sharp and clean. She was flawless and it scared her. She moved her wrist, and the muscles in her arms tensed and shifted. She tilted her head, letting her long, dark hair fall down over her shoulder. It was the color of stained wood, lighten in places and darkened in others. Half of it was braided, but the other half was a waterfall down to her waist. She narrowed her eyes, studying the light armor that was hanging effortlessly from her weightless skeleton. It was all fabric, no real heavy leathers or irons, it fit her like a glove but it was not as innocent as it looked. She had weapons, blades and daggers dangling from every inch of her body. She was a killer, a hunter, she was…

"Katleeniel?" A voice spoke from behind her, and Katherine looked up. She did not turn, only stared deeper into the reflection of the mirror.

King Thranduil stood in the archway, his eyes following hers. Katherine took a sharp intake of air and spun around, hesitantly, to face him. She drew taller in his presence, palling in comparison to the King of the Woodland Realm. "My King" She bowed.

He brushed her off, gesturing for her to stand, "Should you not be on the road? The White Lady has requested your presence… It is a farther travel than you may presume; the South is a very dangerous place." Thranduil spoke carefully, as if she was a broken, frightful animal. Katherine nodded quickly.

"Yes, of course" Katherine replied.

The King was not yet pleased. "Should you need accompaniment…? I would send Legolas but he is… occupied. Rather, I could send you with my finest guards, the finest soldiers of Mirkwood, I could-"

Katherine cut him off, "Do not fear for me" She whispered, and "I will be fine. This forest realm you speak of, where the White Lady dwells, what is it called?" She asked, recalling a past conversation they had earlier this morning when she had first awoken in this strange, foreign land.

King Thranduil nodded, "Lorien, the Forest Realm of Lothlorien"

Katherine took a breath, her fingers wrapping protectively around the bend of her finely crafted bow. Wooden, lifeless as it may be, she felt it leap and rumble at her touch. It reacted like an eager fighter, bubbling with power and excitement. It growled with hunger for the kill, it sparked a flame just under Katherine's skin, which burned into an inferno.

She smiled.